Marcus Morris

Last year in Detroit, Morris was a starter in each of the 79 games in which he appeared. That's unlikely to happen this year in Boston. This summer, the Celtics acquired Morris in exchange for Avery Bradley as Boston cleared salary space for free agent star Gordon Hayward. T...

Signed a four-year, $20 million contract extension with the Suns in September of 2014, keeping him under contract through the 2018-19 season. Traded to the Pistons in July of 2015. Traded to the Celtics in July of 2017.

Morris totaled 17 points (6-15 FG, 3-6 3Pt, 2-3 FT), five rebounds, one assist and two blocks across 34 minutes during Boston's 103-92 loss to the 76ers in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference semifinal-round playoff series.

Morris poured in 11 points (5-12 FG, 1-4 3Pt) and added five rebounds, one assist and one block across 28 minutes during Boston's 117-101 win over the 76ers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal-round series.

Though he expressed frustration last summer when he was traded away from the Suns (and brother Markieff) after he had agreed to a contract extension with Phoenix less than a year earlier, Morris quickly put any dissatisfaction of landing with the Pistons aside and embraced a full-time starting role for the first time in his career. Along with starting all 80 games in which he played, Morris benefited greatly from the Pistons' lack of depth on the wing, as coach Stan Van Gundy handed him 35.7 minutes per game, good for 10th-most in the NBA and a jump of 10 minutes per game from what he received in 2014-15. Morris used the uptick in playing time to post several career highs, with the 27-year-old averaging 14.1 points (on 43.4% shooting), 5.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.4 three-pointers and 0.8 steals per game. Morris is at his best as a mid-range shooter, but his improved proficiency from long range over the last two seasons (36%) has helped upgrade his fantasy outlook. Van Gundy indicated he planned on finding more run for his wing reserves in 2016-17, but Morris seems like a safe bet to continue receiving 30-plus minutes per night. His ability to move between both forward spots and chip in across a few different categories makes him quality roster filler in most fantasy leagues.

2015-16

Marcus and his twin Markieff Morris signed joint four-year extensions with the Suns last season, expecting to play together for the long haul, but in the Suns' attempt to sign LaMarcus Aldridge this summer, they sent Marcus to the Pistons in what was essentially just a salsry dump to clear cap space. The Pistons, on the other hand, were thrilled to receive Marcus Morris in a trade that allowed them to simply absorb his contract into their cap space. Marcus is the projected starter at small forward, but after rookie Stanley Johnson went buckwild at the Orland Summer League, Morris might get pushed to the bench. It's also possible that even more lineup shuffling could happen, and the Pistons could decide to start Morris and Johnson at the forward spots by pushing presumed starting power forward Ersan Ilyasova to a bench role. Through 81 games with the Suns last season, Morris averaged 10.4 points, 1.4 three-pointers, 4.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.2 blocks in 25 minutes per game while shooting 43 percent from the field, 36 percent from three, and 63 percent from the line. He doesn't take many shots from the line, which is probably why he's so erratic there despite being a capable three-point shooter. Morris was a much better shooter off the bench last season (39% 3Pt), playing against other second-string players, than he was in 35 games as a starter (32% 3Pt), and he's been a streaky player throughout his career, so don't be surprised if he gets slotted into a bench role this season and ends up playing a 3-and-D role behind Johnson and Ilysaova at the two forward spots. Morris is intriguing this season, but most players are what they are, and he has been a bench player for the majority of his career, so it's kind of hard to see him growing into much more than that unless he becomes more consistent this season.

2014-15

One half of the Morris duo enters his fourth season in the NBA and second full season in Phoenix. In 2013-14, Morris averaged 9.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 0.9 steals in 22 minutes per game. He shot 44 percent from the field on 7.9 attempts, 38 percent from three on 3.2 attempts, and 76 percent from the free-throw line on 1.9 attempts per game. While not a major fantasy factor, Morris certainly carved out a nice role with the Suns last season and contributed to the team's success in the difficult Western Conference. On the fantasy side of things, he doesn't offer much value outside of his ability to hit three-pointers as a power forward. Given Channing Frye's departure, Morris will have a chance to fill his stretch-four role, though he has competition from his brother Markieff Morris and Anthony Tolliver, and Marcus is a bit undersized for the task. As is, Morris is only a faint blip on the fantasy radar in most formats.

2013-14

Life in Phoenix did not treat Morris kindly. Coming over in a mid-February trade from Houston, he was not granted consistent playing time. When he was on the floor, the former Jayhawk shot the ball poorly. He averaged 7.7 points in 20 minutes last year and made 56 percent from the stripe. Morris must outperform his brother from long range to find minutes.

2012-13

Last year's first-rounder, Morris didn't make a significant impact, as Parsons beat him out for minutes at the three, and Morris probably doesn't project as a regular four. This year, Morris will have to hold off Royce White and Terrence Jones even to secure a backup role.

2011-12

The 14th overall pick in this year's draft, Morris is a capable scorer with a fluid jump shot who could contribute at the NBA level out of the gate - at least on the offensive end. Morris needs to add more strength and improve his defense to get consistent minutes, however. For now, we'd expect Chase Budinger to see most of the team's minutes at the three, but Budinger's hardly an established player, so the door is open for Morris to get more run.